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About the index

Find out more about the Australian Youth Digital Index, including how the Index was developed, the research approach and how data is collected.

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Understanding young people’s digital experiences

The Australian Youth Digital Index is an annual report that assesses quantitative and qualitative data collected from young Australians aged 8-25 about their digital experiences. It also includes insights from parents, carers, social workers, and youth workers. The information is gathered through a combination of surveys and interviews. The Index presents a snapshot of digital usage, perceptions, attitudes and behaviours, and over time will highlight evolving trends.

The Index explained

The Australian Youth Digital Index is a comprehensive measure that provides an authoritative and reliable benchmark on the role of digital technology in young people’s lives in Australia. It highlights emerging themes, trends, issues, and thought leadership for key stakeholders in the youth and digital sector across Australia.

Sample

The Index combines a total of 53 data points across a sample of 4,718 young people aged 8 to 25 (and their parents/carers). The data can be split by gender and shows the progression of behaviour, attitudes, and experiences as young people mature and their relationship with technology changes.

Metrics

The Index scores were calculated to allow for year-on-year tracking of results. The final data was weighted to match representative benchmarks from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, considering factors like age, gender, and location.

Pillars

The Index covers five key pillars:

  • Access. Devices used and how much young people can use them when they need to.
  • Connectivity. How young people connect online (i.e., broadband or mobile data) and how much this is inhibited by limits, speed, or quality of connection.
  • Skills. How well young people can complete digital tasks for school or work, and how they learned digital skills.
  • Safety. Young people’s own rating of how safe they feel online, whether they are aware of various risks online, and how they learned online safety.
  • Wellbeing. How young people feel about different aspects of their life in general and the impact being online has on their life.

Goals

The Index aims to inform, encourage debate, and contribute to policy development, focusing on how young Australians use technology and the associated challenges and opportunities.

How we developed the Index

The development of the Australian Youth Digital Index involved a comprehensive research process that included both quantitative and qualitative data collection.

The research included four main phases:

Quantitative study

  • A large-scale online survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 4,718 young people aged 8-25, including 1,055 aged 8-13, 875 aged 14-17, and 2,788 aged 18-25.
  • The survey addressed various research questions to provide a representative benchmark of how digital technology impacts young people’s lives.
  • The fieldwork took place from June to August 2024.
  • Final data was weighted to match representative benchmarks from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, considering factors like age, gender, and location.

Qualitative study

  • This phase involved a series of focus groups and in-depth interviews with young people and those working with young people.
  • Focus groups included young people aged 18-25 and parents of young people aged 8-17.
  • In-depth interviews were conducted online and lasted 45-60 minutes, involving a diverse group of young people and social workers.

Index calculation

  • Responses in the quantitative survey under each of the five pillars (Access, Connectivity, Skills, Safety, Wellbeing) contributed to an index for each individual pillar.
  • The total index score is an average of the index score for all five pillars.

Advisory Groups

  • The research was guided by an Expert Advisory Group comprising senior independent thought leaders with experience in the youth and tech space.
  • The Youth Advisory Council provided insights and lived experiences to ensure the research was relevant and meaningful.

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At Telstra Foundation we recognise and acknowledge the existing, original and ancient connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have to the lands and waterways across the Australian continent. We pay our respects to the elders past and present. Our flagship Reconciliation Action Plan initiative supports the digital confidence of young women Rangers through the Indigenous Digital Women Rangers Program to use digital technologies, ethical AI, and data collection in their Caring for Country work.

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